Kidnappers demand $1m to free Lagos council chairman

All was gloomy yesterday at house 21, Ona Iwa Mimo Street in Ejigbo, a Lagos suburb.

Mrs. Fatimo Bamigbetan, the wife of the Chairman of Ejigbo Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Mr. Kehinde Bamigbetan, sat in silence. Surrounding her were several women who had formed several mini groups and were engaged in hush conversations. The white shawl that covered her head gave her a dignified look despite the sadness in her eyes.

It was difficult to know what was on her mind. When she replied to a greeting, the words came out just a little above a whisper. Her husband was kidnapped Monday night.

The house was furnished with the greatest simplicity; many could not find seats and they contended themselves with standing, arms akimbo.

In the ante room, several women were in varying moods of distress. A woman, sparse of frame, cursed endlessly at some unseen enemies.

Mr. Dele Alake, a former Lagos State Commission for Information, came in. His eyes displayed surprise and shock. He had come to express his sympathy with Mrs. Bamigbetan.

It was like an action-packed Hollywood movie – guns booming, a vehicle ramming into a tree and confusion all over. When it was over, KehindeBamigbetan, had been abducted, his driver sustained injury and his wife distraught.

There were many questions that remained unanswered even as the family and the police tried to put the matter into perspective. What was the motive for the kidnap of a public official? Why did the abductors wait until he was 50 meters from his home before snatching him?

The last person to see Bamigbetan was his driver, AbiodunOlayiwola, who narrowly escaped with his life.

According to AdewunmiAdesanya, Bamigbetan Personal Assistant on Political Matters, the abducted chairman left the local government secretariat on Egbe-Isolo road around 8pm. “ We were together till 8pm when he left, saying he wanted to go out. That was the last time I saw him,” Adesanya said.

Bamigbetan was said to have visited Alake’s office but his would-be host had left. He then went to Bourdillon Road where he spent some minutes at the home of the Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, before making his way home.

Olayiwola recounted the abduction. He said: “We were inside the street already. When we got to the puddle of water; I suddenly saw a car blocking me. I was wondering why the driver was driving roughly when two people jumped down; one at the front and the other at the back. They stood in front of the vehicle.

“My boss was at the back; he was making a call. Before I could think, I heard rapid gunfire. ‘What! I screamed and immediately put the car in reverse to escape. The shooting continued and my boss bent down at the back. I was careful so as not to be hit by the bullet. In my effort to escape, I hit an electricity pole and the car stopped.

“ I got down and shouted to my boss to get down too. That was how I escaped, but by the time I got back, they had taken my boss and his laptop. Please, help me find my boss,” Olayiwola said.

The gunmen continued to fire at the fleeing Olayiwola. The sound was loud and scary. He was wounded in his left hand. “ Icant even remember how the wound came to be,” he said.

But there are other versions of the story. According to the Secretary to the Local Government Remi Gbadegeshin, the events that led to the abduction was well choreographed.

Gbadegeshin said the kidnappers had earlier abducted a man before Bamigbetan was taken on EniIwaMimo Street. After his abduction, the first man was released.

Bamigbetan was allowed to call his wife at 4: am yesterday. He also disclosed that the abductors demanded $1,000,000 (One million Dollars) as ransom.

Negotiations were ongoing yesterday, it was learnt.

ACN chieftains began to arrive at the Bamigbetan’s home early yesterday. Alake he was “shocked beyond words”.

He lamented the increasing level of insecurity in the country, which has led to the kidnap of a public official.

“ They must have put him under surveillance; maybe for a week,” Alake said and many in the house agreed with him. He assured the wife that her husband would be found. He then asked for prayers. The crowd prayed hard and long. The woman, who had engaged in cursing, prayed the hardest. The people prayed for mercy and favour for the abducted chairman .

Other dignitaries came in. Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs AdemorinKuye also decried the security situation in the country, but spoke with much assurance that the government was on top of the situation.

“This government will not condone any act that will put this nation into chaos. His Excellency has put measures in place to ensure his safe return,” Kuye said.

Mrs. Bamigbetan’s mobile phone rang incessantly. Most of the time she excused herself to receive the calls. Her son, not more than five years, walked into the living room. Most of the women fell over themselves to show him excess kindness. He asked for his mother and when he did not find her, he ran upstairs – playfully.

At the local government secretariat, the mood of the workers was pensive, with many discussing the incident in groups.

“Maybe this will teach him a lesson to always use his security details. Oga will be going around without his security, that’s him for you, we have complained but he will not listen,” said one of his aides.

On Bamigbetan’s street, some of the residents said they were shocked by the news of the abduction. They described Bamigbetan as a gentleman who has done a lot for the local government. “ He is a man of the people; you can even see from his house that it’s not different from many here,” one of the residents said.

Other sympathisers that visited the family include Akeem Munir, a Federal lawmaker representing Isolo Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Musin Local Government Chairman Babatunde Adepitan, Egbe Idimu LCDA Chairman Waheed Adebayo and his Odi-Olowo counterpart, Yemi Ali.

The family was still trying to put together the sequence of events. It was agreed that the abductors waited for him close to his house. But the abduction of a man earlier that night has thrown an interesting permutation into the story. A council official confirmed the man is now in the custody of the police. It was unknown if he was part of the plan or Bamigbetan was just unlucky to have been at the wrong place at the wrong time.